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<\/p>\nOrder to start oil operations<\/p>\n
The Associated Press – Mar 14, 2026 \/ 6:27 pm | Story: 603711<\/p>\n
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Photo: The Canadian Press<\/p>\n
FILE – A worker removes oil from sand at Refugio State Beach, north of Goleta, Calif., on May 21, 2015. (AP Photo\/Jae C. Hong, File, File)<\/p>\n
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright directed a Texas-based oil and gas company Friday to restore operations in waters off southern California that were damaged by a 2015 oil spill, invoking the Defense Production Act.<\/p>\n
Restoring Sable Offshore Corp.\u2019s Santa Ynez unit and pipeline off Santa Barbara aims to address supply disruption risks, according to a department news release. The unit includes three rigs in federal waters, offshore and onshore pipelines, and the Las Flores Canyon Processing Facility. The facility can produce about 50,000 barrels of oil per day and would replace nearly 1.5 million barrels of foreign crude each month, officials said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Trump Administration remains committed to putting all Americans and their energy security first,\u201d Wright said in a statement. \u201cUnfortunately, some state leaders have not adhered to those same principles, with potentially disastrous consequences not just for their residents, but also our national security. Today\u2019s order will strengthen America\u2019s oil supply and restore a pipeline system vital to our national security and defense, ensuring that West Coast military installations have the reliable energy critical to military readiness.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the first day of his second term, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to reverse former President Joe Biden\u2019s ban on future offshore oil drilling<\/a> on the East and West coasts. A federal court later struck down Biden\u2019s order to withdraw 625 million acres of federal waters from oil development.<\/p>\n California Gov. Gavin Newsom condemned the move.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is an attempt to illegally restart a pipeline whose operators are facing criminal charges and prohibited by multiple court orders from restarting,\u201d Newsom said in a statement. \u201cCalifornia will not stand by while the Trump administration attempts to sacrifice our coastal communities, our environment, and our $51 billion coastal economy. The Trump administration and Sable are defying multiple court orders, and we will see them back in court.\u201d<\/p>\n